Abstract
The effects of climate change, soil depletion, a growing world population putting pressure on food safety and security are major challenges for agriculture in the 21st century. The breeding success of the green revolution has decelerated and current programs can only offset the yield affecting factors. New approaches are urgently needed and we propose, “G enome E diting a cceleratedRe -D omestication” (GEaReD) as a major new direction in plant breeding. By combining the upcoming technologies for phenotyping, omics and artificial intelligence with the promising new CRISPR-toolkits, this approach is closer than ever. Wild relatives of current crops are often adapted to harsh environments and have a high genetic diversity. Re-domestication of wild barley or teosintecould generate new cultivars adapted to environmental changes. De novo domestication of perennial relatives like Hordeum bulbosumcould counter with soil depletion and increase soil carbon. Recent research already proved the principle of re-domestication in tomato and rice and therefore laid the foundation for GEaReD.